After yesterday’s brief period of euphoria, markets got their reality check today as poor U.S. data got trading off to a rocky start this morning, reminding investors just how difficult the road to recovery is. U.S. retail sales fell for the second consecutive month by 0.2%, prompting the first string of declines in almost two years. Although retail sales fell less than expected, April data was revised down into negative territory [see also How To Pick The Right ETF Every Time]. The latest slump in consumer retail spending was in part brought on by lower gasoline prices; the national average retail price for gas fell 4 cents a gallon to $3.572, continuing the 10th consecutive weekly decline. Despite relief from painfully high gas prices, consumers are still proceeding with caution, carefully allocating income towards purchases that are more in line with household budget constraints [see also The Central Banks Are Buying Gold [...] Click here to read the original article on ETFdb.com. Related Posts: Shopping For A Retail ETF Judgment Day For Retail ETFs This Week in ETFs: April 9th Edition Tough Times For Retail ETFs Strong September Sales Boost Retail ETFs

After yesterday’s brief period of euphoria, markets got their reality check today as poor U.S. data got trading off to a rocky start this morning, reminding investors just how difficult the road to recovery is. U.S. retail sales fell for the second consecutive month by 0.2%, prompting the first string of declines in almost two years. Although retail sales fell less than expected, April data was revised down into negative territory [see also How To Pick The Right ETF Every Time]. The latest slump in consumer retail spending was in part brought on by lower gasoline prices; the national average retail price for gas fell 4 cents a gallon to $3.572, continuing the 10th consecutive weekly decline. Despite relief from painfully high gas prices, consumers are still proceeding with caution, carefully allocating income towards purchases that are more in line with household budget constraints [see also The Central Banks Are Buying Gold [...]